Cubs urged to move spring training out of Arizona

May 14, 2010

If the Chicago Cubs head back to Arizona for spring training next year, Jane Ramsey, a lifelong Cubs fan, won't be there. She says that state's immigration law signed last month that requires police to check suspected illegal immigrants for proof of legal residency is contradictory to the baseball team's spirit and tradition.

"I will never go to Arizona if that law is in effect," said Ramsey, 59. She said to make the players and fans go to an environment "so hostile that Arizona has created" is "just terrible."

Ramsey and dozens of other fans gathered at Wrigley Field on Friday to call for the team to move its spring training camp to Florida from Arizona to protest Arizona's new law, which they say will lead to racial profiling. The gathering was organized by the Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights.

The fans gathered before the afternoon game against the Pittsburgh Pirates to collect signatures on petitions and to publicize their online petition campaign at www.baseballfansforflorida.com.

"Cubs fans want a winning team and winners train in Florida," said Leone Bicchieri, 46, whose mother is a Mexican immigrant. "We also want a team that shows it respects all players and fans."

The organizers of the campaign said Friday's event wasn't a protest, but a "fan-led movement."

"We're all Cubs fans here and we are just trying to get our team to make the right decision," said Stephen Smith, campaign manager of the coalition.

Organizers said there are other reasons why the Cubs should move the training camp to Florida, pointing to statistics that show 30 of the last 34 World Series champion teams trained in Florida and saying the humid conditions there would be more suitable for pitchers.

But some fans don't support the idea of moving the training camp.

"That's crazy," said Henry Graham, a Cubs fan for nearly 70 years. "I think Arizona law is very reasonable for Arizona. ... The state has the perfect right to do something. I think people who want a boycott are crazy."

Immigrant rights activists also are planning a meeting on Saturday to discuss ways to support a planned protest May 29 in Arizona.

A Cubs spokesman referred requests for comment to Major League Baseball. A league spokesman could not be reached.